West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1887-10-27
SCIENTIFIC AND INDUSTRIAL.

The bacteria Of water and ice have
been found in hail by Prof. L. Maggi.
an Italian Psychologist. Such organisms
arc well-nigh universal.
1t is said that the Belgian glass work
ers arc now preparing TO make glass into
various shapes and patterns by running
sheets Of it, at just the right temperature
to WORK nicely, through steel rollers.
A new artificial cork has been made by
PoteI. a German scientist. from a mixture
OF glue, glycerine and tannin. 1t is
elastic, impervious. strong and durable,
and very cheap. The mass is also appli
cable to other purposes.
or the various geological collections
in the British Museum, the oldest is the
Sloane collection, which was acquired
by purchase in 1853. The fossils were
then regarded rs mere curiosities. and
the original manuscript catalogue, still
preserved, contains many curious entries
to remind the reader Of the rapid progress
OF the science of geology during the Ie-
cent years.
One OF the latest attempts to harness
the forces OF nature for the service OF
man Is the adaptation of windmill for
the turning of dynamo, the electricity
thus obtained being stored in suitable
batteries, and afterward used in liyhtin0
beacons for. the benefit of the maritime
interests. There is station Of this kind
near the mouth of the Seine, and consid-
cradle success has been obtained.
The plan of utilizing coke dust by
making IL into briquettes has been sue
cessfully adopted by gas company at
Lyons, mixing each ton OF fine coke with
about two hundred pounds of coal-tar
ptch and then passing through a com
pressing machine. The total cost is 81
per ton, and the product readily sells for
So to $6-per ton. The expense for
the plant, with capacity of sixty-live
tons daily, was only So, 900.
Forty-five years of observation have
shown that the fifty-three stars cata-
logued by Bessel in the Pleiadcs nearly
all have drift in space opposite to our
own This drift is doubtless only APP
parent, being due TO the motion of the
solar system. Six of the stars do not
partake OF this backward movement on
account of their extreme remoteness.
while two appear To move more rapidly
than the others on account of their near
ness TO us. The former are so distant
that the path, moderately estimated at
u, OOc, 600, 600 miles in length, traversed
by the sun during the forty five years
since Bessels measurement, becomes too
small to he detected from them.
The California Pioneer Society has n
section of timber taken from tho side of
the Powhatan, including portion of the
skin, which is four inches thick, and n
piece of the abutting knee, which is nine
inches thick. TTansversely through the
whole swordfsh has dashed his sword,
and the portion broken off is still Let
Embedded in tic timber. The sword
pierced through fourteen inches Of solid
oak, and the fish was going i'm the same
direction as the vessel, which was under
good head OF steam. An idea of the
strength which must have been cxertcd
can be obtained from the fact that a
riiled siX-pounder could not have done
more than pierce that thickness of wood.
From Archaeological evidence, an Eng
lsh writer contends that tie human
race is growing taller, the increase in
average stature appearing to be about an
inch and quarter in each 200 years.
Measurements of old arnor show de
cided increase in the height of the Eng
hsh ariStocracy within 200 years. An
cient collins found in Great Britain indi-
cate that the Romans could not have
greatly exceeded five Feet five inches in
average stature. Twenty-Five Egyptian
mummics gave an average of 81 riches
Tor males and bS inches for females. The
m'umy of Cleopatra measures about 81
inches, and the most ancient known
mummy OF an Egyptian king is only %
inches long.